Story of the Forgotten
by Authoress-Leigh
Summary: How did Organization XIII come to claim members outside of the original six apprentices? This is the story of Axel and Saix before they were nobodies,the forgotten story of Lea and Ais, the lost somebodies.
1. An Adventure?

_[A/N: My first ever fanfiction! Yay! Not my best piece of writing, but I'll admit that for something started out as an unfinished drabble idea, I'm proud of it. A few notes though. The Raleigh in the story is not the Raleigh in South Carolina. In fact, writing this story, I had no idea Raleigh was a real place. I thought it was pronounced like "Rye-Lee" like the name. Also, even though this is not intended to be a yaoi/shounen-ai crack pairing, I have an odd habit of inadvertantly implying things or hinting at things without realizing it. So, if you adore shounen-ai/yaoi and see little hints or something, I probably have no idea they could be read that way. Whatever floats your boat, the language is censored because I personally don't sware, btw. I'll stop rambling now, please tell me what you think!]_

They fall into oblivion, losing a part of themselves in the process. They lose the very essence of that which is life- a heart. Their heart forever separated from them, their emotions never to be reclaimed, and to live as nothingness, a creature…a person never meant to exist. An abomination barely able to even be called human.

**This is the story before the story**

**The story of the forgotten**

It was a hot summer afternoon in Raleigh, crowds were bustling and the noise of the city seemed to sing in harmony with the summer sun's soprano. In the heart of Raleigh sat a small outdoor nacho cafe where a boy in his late teens found refuge from the everyday city life. His bright red hair looked like a ring of fire around his head and his emerald green eyes were fixed on a book that lay in front of him. Why did he have to get in another fight with his parents? It's all that d*mn book's fault! He should have never been caught reading it, all those years of pretending to be a lower than average student all for nothing!

"What is this rare sight? The carefree and insane Lea actually defeated? Tell me who did it so that I can send them flowers." A man who looked a few years older than Lea joked. He took a chip from Lea's nachos, dipped it in the sauce surrounding the food and ate it. Lea looked up curiously and began to count. "Seven...eight..nine." He muttered as his friend spit out the nacho. "What is freakin' wrong with that spicy a** insane crazy freakin' spicy...hot...D*MN it! Where's the WATER?!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. The customers stared in shock at him for using such vulgar language in a 'family oriented' area. Lea chuckled. He knew when the man got angry he shouted so much that he could only go about four or five real words before losing the point or running out of words all together. "I can't help it I like spicy food, Ais. On the plus side, someone just got a neeew record!" He teased. Ais glared at the boy. Why do I even like this kid?! It's his fault he's always burning my mouth off, I swear that guy is the human incarnation of fire itself!

Lea stood up, took about half of the rest of the chips in one bite, then threw the nachos away and started towards the sidewalk. Ais grabbed the book he'd left and followed. "What's up with you today?!" He whined. Lea looked up and shielded his eyes from the sun. "I'm sick of this dreary life. I've decided to go on an adventure!" He announced. Ais sighed. This wasn't the first time Lea had told him he wanted to 'bust out of town.' It was always his job to talk his friend out of it. "How many times do I have to tell you? You can't just up and leave! You're still in school, you still have parents and how do you propose to make a living? You need money to travel, stupid." He grumbled. An adventure was a stupid, moronic idea that should be left to just fairy tales. As dreary and terrible as it seems, mediocracy has all of the city in it's icy hold. There was no logical way to escape without falling into the pits of dark misery. It is best to stay in our meager mediocre lives instead of risk falling into a dark pit of webs of mistakes and lies for the one in a million chance of an adventure.

Lea studied Ais' expression. "I know what you're thinking. I'm not being suffocated by this town any longer! I've already got a plan, and I'm offering for you to come. If you want to stay and watch all the years of your youth fly right by you, fine by me." He grumbled.

_ As unpredictable as fire. It was then I realized, he's not just a small flame tamed by the masses. I'd always noticed it, usually I just ignored it, though. Even so, never had I seen him so passionate at once. It's one thing to have indescribable amounts of passion, it's a whole other thing to be able to have it surface all at once. I had thought this was the extent of his passion, but I soon learned in one short adventure, how incredibly wrong I can be._

_There was nothing I could do, nothing left in any logical sense, but to agree._

"Fine"


	2. Grand Theft Auto & an Unwelcome Visitor

[disclaimer- Kingdom hearts does not belong to me]

Lea was no ordinary boy. From a young age he was always acting. Acting to his parents the role of an average yet sweet son, acting to his peers as the guy who cared about everyone and was liked by everyone, only Ais knew his real self. He was not nearly as selfless and content as he made everyone think. He was not content in the least. The truth was the only emotion he'd ever remembered feeling towards his city is hate. Now was his chance to leave it and find an adventure somewhere. He'd leave all his fake friends, his now arguing and always angry parents, and his fake self. Maybe the real reason he wanted to leave so badly was to ditch the boy he'd created that was only a shell of himself. Lea wanted to find the real self he had buried, suppressed so deep inside him. He didn't want to hurt his parents, but if running away, if disappearing is what it took, he was ready to pay that price.

But what exactly was the price Lea would have to pay to reawaken his real self?

"Train tickets aren't cheap." Ais groaned as he looked at the bulletin full of places and their respective prices. Lea chuckled and went up to the counter. "One ticket to your next train." He said cheerfully. "Wh-What?! You don't even know where you're _going_?!" Ais cried. Lea turned around. "It's an _adventure_! You never know where you're going!" He said happily. Ais sighed and shrugged off all the words he'd very much like to yell in Lea's face on how insane he was. How insane Lea was, and how insane he himself was for agreeing to the crazy, half-thought out trip.

"It's pretty far, are you sure?" The counter lady asked. Lea smiled. His smile was always charming and childish at the same time. In a way, it almost made Ais jealous that his younger friend was more charismatic and people friendly than he was. "The farther the better!" He replied as he paid the woman and got the two tickets. They boarded the train she'd pointed out to them and found a seat in a corner, farther away from everyone else. There was an air of tension between the two that held firm before the train started. Ais watched the landscape slowly begin to move from the station to the outskirts of the city.

"So...an adventure." It was more a question than a statement.

Lea looked at him with a wide smile. "Yeah. An adventure. In a place we've never seen around people we never knew."

Ais turned to look out the window. The train was still gaining speed and he could see a dog running alongside the train. That dog is going to be you, pretty soon. You'll be chasing after something so desperately, even though your mind tells you that you obviously can't win. You'll be running with all your might for something illogical and against all of your better judgment. This trip in itself is only the beginning. You'll spiral out of control, but you'll still chase it. In the midst of the man's thoughts, he glanced over to see Lea looking at the same dog, but with a smile on his face.

***

Lea watched the train whiz by the city, leaving only a trail of lights flying past like fine pale yellow and white ribbons, gracefully caressing the train's window. By now, night had fallen and the train had a blanket of silence draped over it. Ais was already asleep, his calm face only showing the slightest hint of worry and anger. It was always so easy to tell what he was thinking. Lea couldn't sleep, though. He was busy watching his hated home melt away, fall away, like pieces to an overused jigsaw puzzle. He looked back outside. The lights that once were ribbons were now stars. Stars on a clear night, but on the ground rather than in the sky, where real stars were sparse and hard to see. Sometimes it even felt like the city would overpower even the light of the moon itself. He looked at Ais again. He'd always liked the moon, maybe that worried expression of his would melt away like the scenery out the window when he saw the moon again. This time, though, far away from the home that had held them captive for so long.

***

Morning arrived and the train had finally come to a halt. The groggy crowd was beginning to chatter loudly again just as Ais and Lea awoke. They had finally arrived. The two got up and walked off the train into a station to a considerably smaller town. "We're here!" Lea cheered as he threw his arms in the air. Ais looked around at the grey and terra cotta buildings. The bricks under his feet were a shade of mellow reddish brown. There were hardly any people walking in the streets, but several in line for what looked like coffee shops. The town itself was simplistic, yet beautiful in it's own little way. When Ais came back from drinking in the town's charm, he noticed Lea was gone.

That moron! He shouldn't just walk off, he doesn't even know where he is! I don't even know where I am! If he's so intent on going to a random place, at least stay with the guy you came with! Ais wandered around a bit while grumbling to himself until he found a small alleyway where Lea crouched, holding a piece of bread out to a small dark figure of a creature. "Aww, c'mon, aren't you hungry?" He asked.

"What...the h*ll is it?" Asked a bewildered Ais.

Lea turned and flashed his trademark smile.

"No idea."

Ais stared at the strange creature, half cautiously half curiously. It's eyes were bright yellow and it moved its head side to side. It had two antennae each topped with a small black sphere. It moved toward him with fluent yet twitchy movements. Grace was one thing this creature most definitely lacked. The two stared at each other for a moment that seemed to last much longer than just one or two short seconds. Lea set the bread down and sighed. "It's there if you get hungry. I've got an adventure to make!" He said as he walked casually out of the alley and pushed a loose strand of his fiery hair behind his ear. Ais quickly followed. "Where to now? Breakfast?" He asked. Ais shrugged and nodded. "There's a place over there." He replied, pointing to a restaurant.

***

"Superior, I believe we have two possible candidates."

"Who?"

"Two males, one in his late teens the other in his early twenties. Both seem to have a powerful heart."

"Seem or have?"

"Have, sir."

"Good, do it."

***

"In the name of all things good and delicious, why is this food sh*t?!" Ais cried. He's been looking so forward to a good, non-train meal and as he gazed at the pancakes he'd ordered, he wondered how the rubbery material could even be called food. Even Lea was poking at his rock-hard French toast curiously. Instead of syrup, he'd drenched them in hot sauce that was beginning to eat away at the bread like acid. They looked at each other, threw the cheap food away and quickly left the restaurant.

They were both but fifteen paces out the door when Lea and Ais ran right into a tall man with a long, jet black hooded trench coat. He raised a hand towards them and a dark sphere formed just past his fingers. It made a strange crackling noise and reminded Ais of the creature from before. The sphere grew larger, and Lea jerked Ais away just as it shot out and hit a wall. Lea looked at the now demolished wall just before Ais grabbed his elbow and dragged him away from the enigmatic man all the while finding the breath to shout, "You f***** arse think you can sh*t us like that with that d*mn sh*tty ball thing you sunnuva b*tch! What'd we ever do to you you...you.." Again, Ais was running out of words. He went on rambling, now making even less sense as Lea ran up to a car. He looked back nervously, then fumbled around with the door before opening it.

"That jerk-a** motherf**** sunnuva pig's a** juggurnut's..." Ais shouted before being forced in the car. Lea fumbled with two wires before the ignition started and he floored the accelerator. "Wait a minute...who's car is this?!" Ais cried. Lea navigated around a couple streets into a main road. "Does it matter?! There's some crazy a** guy back there who tried to kill us! Would you rather go that way?! Stealing a car is hardly the least of our worries!" He yelled.

_Somehow, we came to a random town in search of an adventure and we ended up with one. They really weren't joking when they said "Be careful what you wish for". I was beginning to get a taste of what they meant._


	3. On the Run

**[disclaimer-kingdom hearts does not belong to me. Story plot, however, does.]**

_A/N-I've been meaning to thank SayaSoraSanxxSan for my first ever review =D You have no idea how much of a happy camper that made me. Please R&R, I'd like to know how I'm doing!_

It was miles before either of the two dared to look back. Luckily, the police of the town were all called to the mysteriously destroyed wall. Apparently no one else could see the 'dark man' as Lea called him. Finally, Ais looked back. "He's not there. Let's get gas." He reported. Lea shook his head. He passed by the gas station and glanced at the meter.

"We're good for a while."

"A while?! What if the guy shows up again and we run out of gas?" Ais asked.

"We're screwed." Lea replied bluntly. How could he say that and still be able to pass up gas?

Lea glanced at Ais' confused expression. "We're screwed at the gas station too. By now my parents have reported me missing and we're in a stolen car. We should get a little farther away before we get gas." He explained. Retorts filled Ais' mind, but he held his tongue and instead looked out the window.

Why had that man wanted to kill us?

***

"Superior, they escaped. They're smarter than they look."

"Anyone would've ran, you took way too long, Lexaeus. Stupid brute."

"No one asked your opinion, Vexen." Lexeaus spat.

"Vexen. Go." said the Superior.

***

Lea finally pulled into a gas station and refilled the car while Ais got as much food as he possibly could. He was rounding out of the convenience store when again, a dark figure blocked his path. Ais could easily tell this man was different due to his thinner frame and shorter stature, plus a few strands of long blond hair poking out of the hood. There were more of them, more people that wanted them dead.

Not a comforting thought.

Ais dropped the foot and made a run for the car. He jumped in the driver's seat and dragged Lea into passenger's seat. Just before doing so, Lea managed to shove the gasoline back in it's dispenser, but couldn't buckle his seat belt before Ais gunned the engine. "Hold onto something! There are more of 'em!" Ais shouted. Lea's grip tightened around a handle above the window. Lea looked back to see the dark figure walking towards them, but was relieved to see the figure grow smaller and smaller as the sped away into open road. He breathed a sigh of relief when he could no longer see the figure.

He's gone.

The car screeched to a halt and Lea winced as his body was thrust forward while his hand was still on the handle. His wrist was throbbing when he turned back around to see the figure in front of them. "What're you doing?! Gun it! Run him down!" He cried.

"You think I'm not trying?!" Ais shouted. The figure lifted his arm so it was parallel to the ground as if to threaten them. Ais reached for the doors as a slow chill fell upon the car. The windshield grew a layer of ice and suddenly the glass broke under the pressure. Shards showered upon them like snow on a frigid winter day.

"The doors stuck!" Ais shouted. Lea climbed into the backseat and found a several thin metal rods about the size of his index and middle finger put together. He grabbed the rods and bust out the only window with a thin enough layer of ice to break. He let Ais jump out first as he grabbed an empty water bottle and then escaped himself from the icy hold of the car.

"You can't escape us." said the figure. Ais looked at him with piercing hatred in his eyes. Even though he'd always been jealous of Lea's carefree green eyes and his flashy smile, Ais knew that the one thing he had that Lea didn't was the ability to intimidate with just one look. His eyes were naturally scary looking, with a shade of hazel that almost looked yellow. It served well to convey the emotion of hate, and made the 'death glare' so much more meaningful. Of course Ais was completely helpless, but with luck he could fake out the enemy that he was going to do more than verbally abuse him.

Lea walked up to them, the water bottle now filled with a clear liquid that Ais knew all too well was most definitely not water. He followed Lea's gaze to a dark oval shape about three feet from their attacker. Ais looked at Lea and stiffened. He knew that look. That was the look of planning, of careful surveying of their surroundings. That's when Ais noticed that Lea had a hand sliding into his pocket.

He's freakin' insane.

It was too late for Ais to do anything, and frankly he didn't want to. As insane as Lea was, if it was between him and somehow escaping in an ice-cave of a car, he'd happily choose Lea. Lea nudged Ais while the figure was ranting about how they were hopeless. He handed Ais the bottle from behind his back with a smirk. A devilish, mischievous smirk, as if this was some high school prank instead of an escape for their lives. "On the count of three throw the bottle and try to make it to that dark thing." He whispered. Ais noticed a bundled cloth inside the bottle blocking the liquid. Lea pulled out a box of matches from his pocket and lit one and dropped it in the bottle. Ais quickly shut the cap and threw it. The figure looked at the bottle at his feet for a moment. That moment was more than enough time for Lea and Ais to jump into the dark oval.

The figure of the man picked up the bottle and froze layer upon layer on it, then tossed it in the car. The explosion happened seconds afterword, and only barely shook the car. "Stupid kids, think they're immortal. Underestimating our power..." The figure groaned as he returned to his superior.

***

A falling sensation overwhelmed the boys as they entered a sphere like place. Darkness slowly faded into swirling colors, bright and dull. Shadow creatures like the one Lea tried to befriend swarmed the area accompanied by thinner, silver creatures that were taller and sharper looking. Wafts of light came from several different corners. Ais grasped Lea's wrist and lead him into one of the light sources. The bright colors melted away and the shadows disappeared. After a brief moment of darkness, they stepped into a less colorful world with the same dreary feeling as the home city they'd tried to escape. "Where are we..?" Lea asked with a voice barely a whisper.

Ais noticed a man who looked like a slightly older Lea come up to them with a grin. "Lost?" He asked. Lea looked at him and crossed his arms. The man had tattoos on his cheekbones and blue eyes, with wild, unkempt hair tied back into a mane of a ponytail.

"How old are you guys?" He asked.

"Aren't you supposed to introduce yourself?" Ais asked suspiciously. Something about the man made him feel uneasy.

"Reno. Your turn."

"Lea. Eighteen."

"Ais. twenty-two."

Reno's eyes widened in shock. You're only twenty-two?! I could've sworn you were at least thirty!" He gasped. It wasn't the first time Ais had heard that. He took an angry step forward but Lea pushed him back. He could hear Ais muttering insults under his breath.

"Actually, we have a couple hit men on our tail and we're on the run. Got anything for self defense we could borrow?" The redhead asked. Reno laughed.

"I like you. Not just because you look like me, either. You're funny." He said as he was called by a tall, bald man. Lea watched him leave with nothing more than a short wave and looked around the crowd around them. He was looking for something, surveying each individual until he found it. After nearly ten minutes, he found it. Without a word, Lea walked brusquely towards a man. He just passed him, then turned around angrily and ran directly into him. When the man looked around, Lea had already returned to Ais and was now walking in another direction.

"What was that?!" Ais asked. Lea waved the gun he stole.

"Be prepared, right?" He joked as he picked up a piece of old piping. He tossed it to Ais with a smirk.

"What the h*ll? Like we'll blend in carrying a huge pipe around. Way to become an easy target." Ais groaned sarcastically.

Well yeah. I saw another one of those oval-portal things and it's an obvious trap, but if we're armed..." He suggested. They approached the portal and Lea smiled. "Some adventure, huh?" He said as he stepped through. Ais followed.

The trap was more peaceful than Lea thought. They were standing in the middle of a huge castle.

A huge, empty castle.


	4. A Promise Under the Stars

**[I do not own Kingdom Hearts]**

A/N: Just want to say, in my defense, I was listening to 250 and dark stars by falling up. Kinda why this chapter's a little...cliche IMO

The empty castle was much worse than the initial thought of being surrounded by the people that wanted them 'dead'. The emptiness in itself was a threatening taunt. Lea took a few steps forward, with each footstep echoing painfully throughout the entire Grand Hall. The footstep's echo was as if the hall was laughing at them, laughing at how stupid they were to fall into such a terrible position. How hopeless and scared they really were, fighting against a mysterious people they know nothing of, not even how great their numbers are. All they knew was that they could only run, they were no match in strength against the superhuman abilities of their enemy. They were destined to fall, to lose, to die.

Yet he wasn't fazed at all. His flames weren't smoldered, but instead growing larger.

Being in an empty castle meant we have no idea where the enemy was, but the enemy had full knowledge of their position. It was a tactical disadvantage, leaving the option of ambush at any time wide open. Letting our guard down would be suicide at this point. No windows means we have no idea how high up we are, and there looks to be only one entrance and exit. Lea thought as he surveyed his environment. He held his gun up as he walked cautiously towards the open door. Ais followed, holding the huge pipe. That thing was as big as he was, it was a miracle he could carry it! Lea thought. He looked in the hall, finding nothing. Ais followed close behind as they slowly descended the castle, searching for a way out.

On the ground level, the door was sealed shut and a man stood waiting. He had long dread locks and a fierce look on his face. He lifted a hand and six lances appeared. "Stop trying to resist." was all he said. The lances shot forward and Ais barely managed to block them. He tried grasping one, but they moved too fast and only cut his hand. Lea ran to the puzzle that was keeping the doors shut.

Ais knew he had to occupy the attacker long enough for Lea to solve the puzzle-lock for any chance of miraculously surviving yet again, but the lances kept shooting at him, each a projectile death trap flying at massive speeds. The man seemed to be taunting Ais, which in turn resulted in Ais' short temper completely lost. He ran boldly at the man and hit him with as much strength as he could muster. The attacker staggered back and took a minute to regain his composure. Lea turned back to see what was going for a split second before returning to the difficult puzzle.

Ais felt blood trickle down his arm as another lance whizzed past him. He hit the figure again and again, but never had enough time to get three consecutive hits, whereas the figure himself could get nearly nine consecutive hits with one lance before Ais had the chance to hit him again. That was a total of 54 hits per every two. Odds that meant if Lea didn't hurry, they were both dead. Ais narrowly dodged three lances and had to move quickly to escape the other three falling down like icicles from an imaginary roof. He muttered insults under his breath as his usually neatly tied hair fell out from it's tie and now cascaded down his back.

"Got it!" Lea shouted as the doors and gate opened.

"You're only causing more pain for yourselves. The more you run, the worse it will be! You don't understand anything!" The man shouted. Lea looked at him. His usually cheerful and bright eyes were now sharp and piercing.

"We understand enough to know that people who try to kill you are not people you stick around with! What are we, morons?!" He yelled. The man looked at him to say something just as Ais took his chance and rammed his temple with the pipe. The man muttered, "In...evitable...", staggered, then fell. Ais and Lea both ran out of the castle and into the portal they found just outside the gate.

Even after entering a different world, the two didn't stop running. The portal was gone, but the fresh feeling of near-death was something not easily shrugged off. Slowly, Ais began to stop and Lea followed. They sat down in the middle of the open road, though Lea still had his gun in hand while he watched Ais tend to his various cuts from the previous encounter.

"We're going to die, aren't we?" Ais asked.

Lea chuckled, then lay and gazed at the stars. "I dunno, I'd say we're pretty lucky in terms of escaping." He muttered while he watched the tiny beads of light each shine. When was the last time he'd seen stars like these? There were so many, each like a single note in a long, beautiful sonata alongside the moon, as if she sang a song all her own-the song of night. Ais lay down and looked at the sky as well.

"We can't run forever, and luck only goes so far." He said flatly. Ais smiled. Not a manipulative smile, not a charming smile, but a smile that Ais had never seen before. One of real amusement, not a fake amused smile that he'd seen often before. He was shocked how different the two were.

"We're the stars." Lea replied.

"What the h*ll does that mean?" Ais groaned. He was tired, it had been almost two days since he'd gotten any sleep and he was not in the mood for a joke of any kind. Especially after a strenuous fight.

"At first glance, they look small and weak, emitting only a fraction of the light with only a fraction of the strength of the moon. It's clear they're lost, no match at all compared to the moon. When you look closer, though, each star still shines. Even though they're not as bright as the moon, they still try, and every so often, one manages to shine brighter than the moon. Even if it's just for a night, or heck even a minute, it doesn't change the fact that it beat the moon. The stars are the ones that can turn night into day; the moon will never be able to do that." Lea explained. He reached up at the sky with an open hand, and then slowly closed his hand. "We'll shine brighter than that d*mn moon. We won't die, I won't let it happen. The point of an adventure is to look back when we're old men and say, 'Man, that was one _h*ll _of a crazy journey!' and laugh. Can't do that if we're dead, can we?" He assured with a chuckle.

"Didn't understand a thing about the stars, but if you mean the underdog wins, you're more insane than I thought... I hope you're right, though. It's a nice thought...being old and looking back on an adventurous youth...it almost makes up for you talking me into this escapade. Well then, wake me up in three hours. You keep guard first." Ais mused.

"What?! No! I want to sleep! No frickin' fair!" Lea whined. He sat up and shook Ais' body.

"Shut up and keep guard. Who just saved your skinny little a**? I get first sleep, I'm injured, remember?" Ais hissed.

"Fine." Lea pouted. He looked back up at the stars and smiled. After a few minutes of only the noise of crickets ever so often breaking the peaceful silence, Ais broke the silence himself.

"Hey, promise me if I die, you'll survive and tell our story when you're old." Lea looked at his back in surprise.

"You won't die." He said stubbornly. Ais sighed.

"Stop being a kid. Just promise me."

"Only if you promise if I die, you'll live and tell my story too." Lea replied.

"Fine." Ais said as he yawned.

"Then it's a promise."


	5. Annoying? As If!

**[Kingdom Hearts does not belong to me.]**

Morning had come swiftly and the two companions were now walking the long, empty road they had appeared on the night before. The sun shined brightly, but there was a strange silence along the road. Usually birds were singing and insects buzzing, but neither of the sounds were heard. It was a peaceful day, but still neither of the boys let their guard down.

"My feeeeeet huuuurt!" Lea whined. Ais looked at him, then back at the empty road. Lea looked at him with pouty eyes.

"Can't we take a break?!" He pleaded.

"No." Ais replied coolly. Lea cut him off and held a stern gaze. Was he trying to intimidate? If so, he was failing terribly. He looked more like an angry four-year-old than intimidating.

"What do you want me to do, carry you?!" Ais said, thick with sarcasm. Lea perked up.

"Please?!"

" H*ll no."

After another ten minutes of walking, Lea broke out in spontaneous laughter. Ais looked over at him in confusion. If he asked what he was laughing at, he risked knowing something better off left unknown, but being left out was nearly just as bad.

"What is it now, giggles?" He groaned.

"I was just thinking about the look on your face when that ice guy appeared at the gas station. You were all like, 'OH CRAP!' like you set off a bomb or something!" Lea teased. He tried re-enacting the expression, earning a chuckle from Ais.

"What about you? How about the look on your face when you first talked about the adventure? You looked like a puppy about to get a home!" He shot back. Lea laughed and looked up at the clear blue sky.

"You know what an 'Indian Summer' is? He asked dreamily.

"A time of calm, happiness and prosperity before a long period of pain. A warm day reminiscent of summer just before winter." Ais answered. Lea gave him a displeased look.

"Way to steal my cool moment. That was MY line!" He grumbled. Ais messed up his hair and laughed. How long had it been before they'd laughed like this? It was only three days ago that they were talking about an adventure in their safe city, but it felt like for an eternity they had been running like mice from a cat's hold. He couldn't even remember the last time they talked so casually, laughed so freely...He liked this world. That is, until both he and Lea came to screeching halts when a tall man with an eye patch appeared in front of them. He didn't waste any time talking, only lifted a gun-like weapon and pulled the trigger. The supposed bullet shot right in the space between Ais and Lea. The man laughed and lowered his gun.

"You guys are really annoying, you know that?" He groaned.

"I could say the same for you." Ais replied. He and Lea were already ready for an ambush, but the man didn't attack.

"Annoying? As if! Are you trying to make me angry?" The man hissed. He lifted his gun-like weapon and shot hundreds of arrow-bullets, forcing Lea and Ais to dodge hysterically with no time for a return attack. Eventually, the bullets receded and Ais hit the man in the back with his pipe.

"I'm really wishing that you got me a gun too, this thing is terrible!" He shouted as Lea shot the man's shoulder. The bullet went right through and the man stood back up.

"Not bad, kid. Maybe you guys actually are useful. I'm not really in the mood to fight...besides, with luck you'll get that mad-scientist killed." He muttered, suddenly disappearing. Now, a huge castle came into view, with what looked like arrows pointing every which way. Ais and Lea stared at it in both awe and fear. Lea pulled a coin out of his pocket and held it up.

"Heads we go inside, tales we run like heck and hope they don't see us." He said as he flipped it. Ais watched the coin spin in the air, then fall on the ground. The two stared at the outcome in mild surprise and fear.

Of Course.

Heads.


End file.
